Walter c



I (No Model.)

W. 0. PETTIS.

GATE.

No; 275,262. Patentd Apr. 3, 1883.

UNITED STATES PATENT Fries.

W'ALTER O. PETTIS, OF COLLEGE HILL, MISSISSIPPI.

GATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 275,262, dated April 3, 1883,

Application filed October 20, 1882. (X0 model.)

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, \VALTER 0. Forms, of College Hill, in the county of Lafayette and State of Mississippi, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gates; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use it, reference beinghad to the accompanyingdrawings,which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in gates.

It consists in the combination of a gate with a support or hinge upon which it rests, and with a latch which catches in a slot'in the hinge, so as to lock the gate in position.

It further consists in the upper hinge of the gate, which consists of one or more rods to pass through the post, and a perforated rod or plate which is passed through the gate, and which can be so adjusted as to cause the gate to swing either open or closed, as may be desired.

Theobject of my invention is to provide a cheap and simple gate which is not onlylighter and cheaper than those now generally used, but which is especially adapted for use upon railroads where a locomotive or cars are required to open the gate.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my invention complete. Figs. 2, 3, and 4 are detail views of the same.

A represents the post to which the gate is hinged, and B the post against which the gate closes. These posts are connected together by the cross-bars 0, below the level of the ground, so as to hold them rigidly in position and prevent their sagging or getting out of position. These cross-bars will hold the posts always rigid and prevent them from being thrown out of line by the heaving of the frost.

The gate D is composed of a number of panels, which are secured to the post E at their inner ends, and are then braced by the curved brace F. The outer or free ends of the panels are left entirely unconnected, so as to dispense with that weight upon the outer end which causes the gate to sag. As the outer ends of the panels are not connected together, it becomes necessary to change the latch from the outer end of the gate, where it is usually placed, to the inner end. The lower corner of the gate rests upon the support G, which is made screw-threaded and passed through the post A; or it may be secured to the post in any way that may be preferred. In order to prevent this support from turning in the posts, a suitable flange, H, is formed upon its top, and through this flange and the post are passed suitable bolts, so as to always keep the support in position. The top of this support is made concave, and has a recess, I, made in its top to receive the pivot of the gate, and the slot J, in which the latch catches.

Bolted to the lower end of the post to which the panels are secured is the castingK, which has a suitable pivot, L, formed on its inner end to catch in the recess I, made in the top of the support. In this casting is pivoted the lever M, to which the vertically-moving latch N is pivoted. To the outer end of this lever is connected a chain, cord, or rod, which extends upward to the top of the gate, where it is connected to the operating-lever 0. When the outerend of the operating-lever O is pressed 7 downward the lever M is raised upward, so as to lift the latch out of the slot which is made in the center ot'the support. Suitable grooves are formed in the casting, so as to guide this latch in its movement and prevent it from becoming displaced.

The outer end of the lever M may have a small chain or'loop attached to it, so as to allow the gate to be locked, when it is necessary, to a suitable catch,which can be provided for that purpose. Suitable stops can also be attached to the casting or support, so as to limit the movement of the gate.

The upper hinge of the gate consists either of two rods, which are passed through the gatepost A, or of a single rod, R, having its inner end bifurcated, and in between the ends of this rod or rods is passed the perforated rod or plate S, which is passed through the gate. This rod or plate S has a n umber of holes made through it, so that the pivotal bolt or pin T can be made to pass through any one of two or more holes made in that end of the rod or plate which comes next to the post A. When the pivotal bolt is passed through the outer one of these three holes the gate will be allowed to incline forward just sufticient to cause the gate always to close when left free to niove, and when the pivotal rod or bolt is passed through the central hole the gate will stand in any position in which it is left, whereas if the pivotal rod is passed through the inner one of the three holes the upper corner of the gate will be drawn inward toward the post A to such an extent that the gate will always swing open whenever the latch is operated. The other end of this rod or plate also has three holes made through it, so that the pivoted rod or plate which passes through its inner end can be adjusted from one hole to the other in order to allow the rod or plate to be adjusted back and forth.

This gate is specially adapted for'gates upon railroads where the locomotive or ears open the gate, because, owing to the lightness of the parts, there is no danger of the gate being injured or broken when it is struck by the advancing train.

Having thus described my invention, I claim-- 1. The combination of a gate which is pivoted at its lower inner corner upon a suitable support, with a latch on its rear stile, which engages with this support to lock the gate when closed, substantially as set forth.

2. In a gate, the combination of the gate, the support for its lower inner corner, and a casting which is applied to the corner of the gate, with a lever, M, pivoted to said casting, the latch N, connected to the lever, the conneoting cord, wire, or chain, and the operatinglever for raising the latch, substantially as shown.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WALTER G. PETTIS. Witnesses J. W. MoLEoD, S. M. HOUR. 

